


Now and Then

by ryukoishida



Series: Sunlight Frenzy. Endless Tales. [24]
Category: Arslan Senki | Heroic Legend of Arslan
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-13
Updated: 2018-02-13
Packaged: 2019-03-17 23:07:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 766
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13669188
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ryukoishida/pseuds/ryukoishida
Summary: She leans forward on her tiptoes, murmurs with a soft yet certain tone, “Arslan, I—”, her eyes fluttering shut as she senses the warm breaths from the king sweetened by the wine he’s drank.[Prompt: Breathtaking Kiss]





	Now and Then

It has been five years since their farewells. They were children then, when they last saw each other — broken and torn apart by realities of war and the chaotic destructions that were left behind. There was something within their hearts that was trembling with fear of the unknown and expectations of what could have been, but finding the right words to convey that exact emotion was difficult at that age, even more so when their home countries were still at war.

 

So they said nothing, and left it hanging in the air between them as their distance grew.

 

But now as she stands tall and proud as a true knight, part of the envoy from Lusitania, in the Parsian court, those same determined, golden eyes that have always captured his heart once again focused on no one but him, no longer the naïve prince but the honored Shah of the country he and his men have worked hard in the last few years to rebuild.

 

The polite pleasantries sound stiff, but they are necessary when they are surrounded by witnesses. After the meeting, there’s a welcome banquet for the guests. Two hours and too many drinks later, nobody is in a sober enough state of mind to question where the king has gone to, or where one of the Lusitanian knights has disappeared off to. Only Daryun, always the watchful protector of the Parsian shah, saw the two of them sneaking off to somewhere quieter and allowing them more privacy, and with a small, knowing smile, he stood guard by the closed doors that open up to the terrace outside.

 

“I thought we would never get a moment to ourselves,” Arslan laughs softly as he leans over the banister. The sultry summer breeze teases through his silver hair and makes the wide sleeves of his robes flutter elegantly, the air bringing along with it a hint of floral fragrance.

 

“Is there something you wish to talk about, Your Majesty?” Estelle stands at a careful distance away from him. She’d shed off the heavy armor for the banquet and is currently wearing a sleeveless muslin dress dyed in bright turquoise that accentuate her long, golden hair and elegant but subtly powerful frame.  

 

“So I am no longer the devil, hmm?” Arslan turns towards her with a small, teasing grin, and the Lusitanian knight’s cheeks tainted rosy pink when she was reminded of her careless words thrown casually at the prince all those years ago. “Are you disappointed that I did not end up sprouting any horns?”

 

“Your Majesty, please forgive my thoughtless comments; those were nothing but the immature nonsensical words of a foolish, insolent child,” Estelle lowers her head quickly in a small bow of apology, but the shah only chuckles in response.  

 

“I am still not accustomed to the way you address me by my title,” Arslan walks the few paces to close their distance until Estelle has no choice but to lift her head up to look at the king. “Will you not call me by my name once more, Estelle?”

 

Warm fingers caress along her blushing cheeks, and she feels herself willingly trapped within those brave, bright eyes, just like all those years ago, except this time…

 

She leans forward on her tiptoes, murmurs with a soft yet certain tone, “Arslan, I—”, her eyes fluttering shut as she senses the warm breaths from the king sweetened by the wine he’s drank. Their lips touch in a coy kiss, yet the ripples of that simple contact are already spreading like a pebble dropping into the mirror surface of a lake, and before they question it any further, Estelle is pulling Arslan towards herself with a kind of raw, fierce strength, and their lips meet again in an unforgiving kiss.

 

Fingers mapping out faces, tongues delving in to taste for the first time, hearts beating erratically, out of time, until they synchronize as one melody — time has lost meaning for them for the moment, and when they part again, their eyes remain closed for a few seconds, their breaths unsteady as they try to process what’s just happened.

 

“Well, this…” Arslan opens his eyes slowly, dark blue soaked with the kind of gentle warmth that Estelle has never seen before and would like to see again and again, “…this is certainly much more different than the reunion I have imagined.”

 

“Not a disappointing one, I hope?” Estelle raises one of her eyebrows, a corner of her mouth twisted up into a playful grin.

 

“Not at all,” Arslan says, pulling her into his embrace once more.


End file.
